


call it what you want to

by an_expensive_imagination



Series: Jeronica Goes to Yale [1]
Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: Banter and Sex, But Somehow They’re The Last Ones to Know, College AU, Everybody Knows They’re In Love, F/M, First Year At Yale, Friends With Benefits, Growing Up and Being Awesome and Leaving Riverdale, Jughead and Veronica Go To Yale, Reluctant friends to lovers, Very Minor Barchie Mentions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-15
Updated: 2020-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:40:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22744159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/an_expensive_imagination/pseuds/an_expensive_imagination
Summary: “First things first,” Veronica says, reaching up to slide the ever-present gray beanie off his head, “no beanies in college.”
Relationships: Jughead Jones/Veronica Lodge
Series: Jeronica Goes to Yale [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1662043
Comments: 52
Kudos: 244





	1. yeah, you know I did one thing right

**Author's Note:**

> Fair warning: I have seen nothing of season 4 so this is entirely AU as of the season 3 finale, and even my memory of everything that happened in season 3 is dubious.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jughead almost makes a comment about this being the beginning of a beautiful friendship. But it isn’t really. They’re not friends.
> 
> Friendship was, in fact, never mentioned in their terms and agreements.

**part 1:  
** **first semester**

* * *

It’s about two weeks into the first semester and they just keep spotting each other all over campus.

Veronica hadn’t seen Jughead at the orientation or any of the other freshman events, but it’s like suddenly he’s everywhere.

She ends up taking five of the nine classes she visited during shopping period.

( _Don’t overextend yourself,_ her academic advisor had cautioned. But she’s a Lodge. She can handle the workload.)

Anyway, Veronica is now certain that Jughead is in at least three of her classes.

She’s seen him sitting in the front row for statistics class, then hanging out with what appeared to be lacrosse players before the psych lecture began. Now he’s walking in just in the nick of time for lit class.

They haven’t exchanged much besides the obligatory what’s up nod from across a crowded room. It’s hard to say who’s been avoiding who to be honest.

Not that she cares.

* * *

College is the first time in his life Jughead is actually economically comfortable. He’d applied for every single scholarship known to man and Yale had been generous enough to give him a full ride. Between that and his on campus gig swiping student IDs in the cafeteria, he’s even able to start saving up some extra cash.

It’s the first time in a long time that he can remember falling asleep without adding and subtracting money in his head. It’s a good feeling, he finds. He sleeps easier in his dorm room, even with the pressures of classes and his hyperactive roommates, than he ever did in Riverdale.

It’s hard to keep Riverdale out of his mind for long, though. Mostly because he keeps seeing Veronica Lodge all over campus lately. He’s pretty sure they’re in at least 3 classes together. How had that even happened?

“Yo, Jones!” Wilke bursts into his room and pulls Jughead from his thoughts. “We’re heading out to pick out some supplies for tonight. You wanna come with?”

Jughead shakes his head no, raising the textbook he’s highlighting. “Gotta get a head start on this,” he tells his roommate. “But don’t worry, I am definitely coming to the party, as promised.”

“ _Noice_! See you on the rooftop, then.”

Jughead chuckles to himself. He’s not sure how exactly he ended up sharing a suite with the two freshman stars of the Bulldogs lacrosse team, but they’ve been getting along just fine so far.

* * *

“You _have_ to come!”

Veronica just groans, hiding her head under a pillow.

Lydia has been trying to goad her into joining her at a rooftop party at Durfee all week, but Veronica isn’t feeling it. She still has readings to catch up on and she should probably get a head start on at least one of the three papers she has due in the next few weeks.

“Sexy Sophie from Game Theory is definitely going to be at this party and I need a wing-woman.” Lydia is relentless. “I am invoking the sacred roommate code here, Veronica Lodge! You can’t leave me hanging, that’s in the Roomie Handbook.”

To be honest, between the singleminded determination and the red hair, she kind of reminds Veronica of Cheryl Blossom.

“Ugh, fine!” Veronica caves, tossing a pillow at Lydia to stop the celebratory shrieks.

They’re both grinning though. Their first official college party together is exciting after all.

* * *

_Are you fucking kidding me?_

The first thing Veronica sees when she arrives at the party is Jughead Jones III.

She can’t help but stare. He’s still wearing that stupid hat and he’s holding court over by the kegs with a group of guys she’s seen him around with before, and since when is Jughead such a social butterfly?

“Do you know him?” Lydia pulls her from her thoughts. “Oh, I think he’s in my sexual modernity class actually. He’s got a funny name, but I’m totally blanking right now.”

“Jughead,” Veronica supplies. “I’ve seen him around.” Vague answer at best, but not a complete lie either.

“He’s kind of cute, I think,” Lydia muses. “ _Aaaand_ now he’s also staring back at us.” She waves an awkward hello before excusing herself to track down Sexy Sophie from Game Theory.

Veronica turns away to mingle with some girls she recognizes from her dorm. She’s determined to not be the first to break the mutual silence between them. She doesn’t need to converse with discount Holden Caulfield.

After a few minutes, Jughead approaches her with two cups in hand. “I come in peace, Elvira,” he offers as greeting, handing over one of the drinks. “Jungle Juice, it’s called. It...well, it tastes a bit like lye and punch, but you get used to it. Or so I’m told.”

Veronica takes the drink, clinking her plastic cup against his when he tilts it towards her a bit in a cheers gesture. They both drink deep and wince as it goes down.

“Seeing you around a lot lately,” Jughead says.

“Seems to be inevitable.”

”Look, I’m just thinking maybe we should call a truce or something.”

Veronica raises a perfectly groomed eyebrow. “I didn’t realize we were at war, Jones.”

Jughead lets out a wry chuckle. He pauses for a beat, licking his lips as he considers what he wants to gain from this whole exchange.

“Look, I just thought it’d be useful to have someone around who understands where you’re coming from.” The earnestness in his tone surprises them both. “And where _I’m_ coming from. College can be...” He trails off, not quite knowing how to finish that sentence.

“Yes, it can,” Veronica agrees after a beat. They lock eyes for a second so they both know they’re being a bit too sincere right now. “So. What exactly are you proposing?”

Jughead takes a breath, shoving his hands into his jeans’ pockets. “An alliance. You know, someone to have as back up, maybe a study partner since we have so many classes together. I don’t know, I just figured...it’d be nice. To have someone around. _If_ we need it.”

“That sounds... _reasonable_ ,” Veronica concedes with a nod. “However, every alliance needs some parameters.”

“Of course.” Jughead immediately agrees. “What do you propose?”

“First things first,” Veronica says, reaching up to slide the ever-present gray beanie off his head, “no beanies in college.”

Veronica is sure he’s going to argue. That he’s going to call her a snob and go to war for his right to wear that ridiculous beanie until it disintegrates. But to her surprise, she notices the corners of his lips turn up a bit as he fights off a smile.

Then Jughead scrunches up his face, closing his eyes as he runs a hand through his hair. Messy and tousled is actually a good look on him. The thought catches Veronica off guard so she keeps it to herself.

“Fine,” he concedes. “Allies, right?” He adds upon seeing the surprise on her face.

“Allies.” Veronica nods and flashes him a smile. “Also, what happens in Yale stays in Yale.”

“Standard Vegas rules apply.”

Veronica grins at that. “Do you have anything you care to add?”

Jughead ponders it for a few seconds. “How about we just agree to have each other’s backs throughout freshman year and then we take it from there?”

“I can agree to those terms, Torombolo.” She extends a hand out and they shake on it, as if they’re closing a business deal.

Jughead almost makes a comment about this being the beginning of a beautiful friendship. But it isn’t really. They’re not friends.

Friendship was, in fact, never mentioned in their terms and agreements.

* * *

One of the biggest perks of being Jughead‘s ally is that in less than a month, he has managed to attain an almost encyclopedic knowledge of all the food spots in New Haven.

He knows where the best coffee cart on campus is, which is the best pizza place, what’s the most amazing little taco truck in the city and the diner with insanely decadent chocolate milkshakes. So when he shows up for their godforsaken 8:20 a.m. class with an extra cup of coffee for her, Veronica just about falls to her knees with gratitude.

It quickly becomes a routine for them then. Jughead will bring coffee from the good cart and Veronica will bring those extra muffins he likes from the cafeteria in her dorm.

Between sugar and caffeine, they’re both determined to survive a full semester of this early morning torture.

* * *

It basically takes a month of early morning class for Veronica to break down. It's come down to dressing up or sleeping an extra forty five minutes and God help her she's picking the extra sleep.

Whatever, it's not like anyone else truly cares that Veronica’s wearing a hoodie and jeans to class. However, she can’t help but notice that Jughead is staring at her as he settles in his seat.

“ _What_?” she near hisses, wanting him to get whatever witty comment he has out of the way now.

“Nothing. Just. I hadn’t seen you with those glasses. They’re nice.” He clears his throat. “Casual is a good look on you, Lodge.”

Veronica eyes him skeptically, waiting for the mocking retort that she’s sure is going to follow. But it never comes.

Jughead just grins. “Seriously. Not that I’m a fashion expert.” He hands over her coffee cup. “But I like it.”

“Gracias, Torombolo,” Veronica says with the brightest smile she can muster before drinking her morning coffee.

And even after that, when the sight of her in a Yale sweater with her hair pulled up in a messy bun becomes less of a novelty, it always takes Jughead a little bit by surprise when he sees her.

It always pulls a little smile from him.

* * *

Jughead Jones is basically a human vending machine.

No matter the time or place, the boy is always fully stocked with a variety of snacks. While Veronica abhorred the habit in high school, it’s quickly proving to be a life saver in college.

“Mm,” she mutters in between bites of a Butterfinger, “you should start carrying around some healthy stuff. I’m gonna get a head start on the freshman fifteen if I keep living off candy in between classes.”

Jughead rolls his eyes. “Easy, Audrey Hepburn. This jacket isn’t really fit to carry salads in the pockets.”

Veronica slaps his arm with a grin, rolling her eyes right back at him. “I meant something like peanuts or grapes - apples are always good. You can dip them in peanut butter, or cheese, or even caramel, if you’re really craving that sugar high. Plus they’re great for keeping up energy.”

“Less complaining about my snack choices and more studying.” Jughead taps his pencil against her practice test. “You’re still messing up on the real world analysis data sets. Come on, let’s go over the notes. I know you can get this down.”

Jughead shrugs her words off but it doesn’t escape Veronica’s notice that after their conversation he starts stocking up on what she likes; almonds, peanuts, grapes and Granny Smith apples complete with little packs of peanut butter she’s sure he’s hoarding from the cafeteria.

Another thing, Veronica quickly notices that Jughead is old school. He takes all his notes by hand, never brings a laptop to class. However, he has the most meticulous notes she’s ever seen. They’re color coordinated and carefully organized by subjects discussed in class along with supplemental notes from their textbook and the course pack. Plus he’s a savant at Statistics and will happily correct her problem sets and share said notes as long as she doesn’t get too snarky.

* * *

It’s officially fall and, due to some freak coincidence, half the people in the musical theater department are incapacitated with a severe case of the flu. Flyers calling for auditions for the musical are posted all over campus.

“Mmm, you should audition for that,” Jughead mumbles in between bites of the fries he’s unabashedly stealing from Veronica’s plate. “I’m meant to be reviewing it for the Daily News.”

“Not sure my performance is up to snuff for the Yale stage.” Veronica dismisses the idea with the wave of a hand. “But speaking of the Daily News, I read your piece about the lacrosse team’s undefeated streak and the profiles into the starting line-up. It was well written. Almost made me care about lacrosse as a sport.”

The comments elicit a chuckle from Jughead, and the boy does look good when he smiles. Veronica beams triumphantly at the fact that she got him to laugh. She’s been doing it more and more lately, and she doesn’t know why she likes it so much.

“I’m serious, you know,” Jughead presses on. “Those musicals you did in high school, you were always good.”

Veronica deflects the compliment. “And here I thought you only attended Riverdale High’s musical productions to watch Betty perform.”

“Yeah, well. There was something about you.” Jughead shrugs a shoulder and goes back to thumbing through his book. “It was always hard to look away when you were on stage. You’re kind of undeniable.”

Veronica stares at him, noticing the pointed way he’s avoiding her eyes. It’s not the words that take her by surprise; she’s aware that she delivers a good performance on stage. No, it’s the tone: soft, warm, almost affectionate. All of which they decidedly _aren’t_ with each other.

For a second, she desperately wants him to look at her with those blue eyes...

Then she clears her throat, attempting to snap out of it. “I’ll consider it,” she says, tucking the flyer into her bag. “Do you want the rest of my fries?” She’s pushing the tray towards him because she already knows the answer.

“Yes, please!” Jughead is full-on grinning at her now, like she knew he would.

Veronica would never admit he’s the reason she started ordering extra fries in the first place.

Weeks later, Veronica has her debut on the Yale stage as Winnifred in _Tuck Everlasting_ to rave reviews. But it’s Jughead’s review from The Daily News that she cuts and saves in her journal, reading over it more times than she cares to admit.

* * *

Thanksgiving break is upon them faster than either one expected. Veronica has a town car coming to pick her up at her dorm. Jughead packs up his motorcycle for the drive back to Riverdale.

Being back home feels surprisingly inimical for both of them. Veronica’s parents are officially divorced and she’s spending the break alone with her mother. She should be used to it, but their every interaction ends up feeling stiff and somewhat forced.

Jughead finds himself in the opposite situation. His parents are separated, yet FP and Alice Cooper are officially living together. To say that it’s awkward to share a house with his ex-girlfriend while your parents are right in the middle of their honeymoon phase would be a severe understatement.

It’s the morning after Thanksgiving and Veronica is desperate for an escape so she heads over to the Cooper-Jones house hoping to catch Betty and rope her into doing something. She’s surprised to find Jughead in the front drive, packing up his motorcycle.

“Torombolo,” she greets with a smile. She’s happy to see him, has in fact gotten used to seeing him every day and his absence in her life for the past week has been...notable. “Going somewhere?”

“Yeah,” Jughead says without looking up. He continues packing some odds and ends in one of the saddlebags of his Harley. “Back to school.”

Veronica gasps in surprise. “You’re bailing?”

“It’s just...Jellybean keeps picking fights with Mrs. Cooper - Alice. Yeah, I’m never gonna get used to calling her that.” He shakes his head with an involuntary shudder. “And it’s a bit awkward, the whole Betty is going to be my stepsister thing. My dad keeps trying to act like this whole new modern family thing is completely normal for us. I don’t know, I just...I can’t handle another day of this.”

“Take me with you.” The immediacy and earnestness of her request takes them both by surprise.

“You realize I’m going on my bike. It’s like a 3 hour drive and it’s gonna be cold. And probably uncomfortable.” He doubts she’s ever been on the back of a motorcycle in her life, probably used to town cars and limousines. “Not to mention that I can’t fit your 3 Louis Vouitton bags here.”

“Well, first, if you can handle the drive down school, then so can I,” she challenges, crossing her arms over her chest. “I can toughen out the ride. And second, I was mostly bringing back clothes I wasn’t using at school. You know, trying to Marie Condo my dorm. Anyway, what I’m bringing back will probably fit in your other saddlebag.”

Jughead furrows his brow in thought and she can practically see the gears in his brain spinning away to try to find a way to tell her no. “I just...I’m ready to go back home.”

The words make Jughead take pause. “Okay,” he agrees. “Let’s go home.”

Veronica smiles, letting out a breath she hadn’t even realized she was holding. “Great! I need to pack and change for the ride though.”

“No problem. I still have to finish packing some stuff up here and I wanted to check out the bike before I headed out. Pick you up in 30?”

“Sounds perfect. Text me when you get there.”

And exactly 30 minutes later, Veronica walks out of the Pembrooke in a pair of dark skinny jeans, white Adidas and a leather jacket over a Yale hoodie.

The sight makes Jughead’s jaw drop because holy shit she looks beautiful like that.

Veronica stuffs her backpack in the free saddle back and climbs on behind Jughead.

“Here,” he hands her the spare helmet. “Hold on and just...squeeze my shoulder if you need me to stop.”

Veronica wraps her arms around his chest and nods. “Let’s go.”

It’s not a terrible ride actually. Veronica shares an earbud so they can listen to music, though when they can’t settle on a band they switch to an audiobook. They stop to get burgers and shakes at the coolest little food truck, which gets a 5-star Jughead rating.

But most surprising is how Veronica actually enjoys the drive, asking him to go faster and holding on to him for dear life whenever they take a curve.

* * *

Veronica sits down across from Jughead and drops two trays on the table with an assortment of snacks and drinks. “You look like you’re in serious need of fuel.”

Jughead looks up from behind a stack of books. “Yeah, well, turns out you can’t just watch Saoirse Ronan’s _Mary Queen of Scots_ and bullshit your way through the essays for this history class.” He let’s out a groan. “I am so in over my head with this professor. He drones on and on in class, but none of it is related to what he wants in the essay and I’m only halfway done with the reading list.”

Veronica reaches for his notebook and looks the material over. “You know, I can proofread that for you, maybe add some footnotes. I’ve read almost all the books in the syllabus,” she says casually. “If you want.”

Jughead quirks his brow. “Bit afraid to ask how those ended up on your reading list, Lodge.”

“I went through a monarchies phase,” she says with a small shrug of the shoulders. “I read up on the Tudors and the Stuarts right after my Marie Antoinette phase. Don’t judge, I had diverse interests.”

“No, not at all. I went through a pretty intense archaeology phase after I first watched the Indiana Jones movies,” Jughead admits with a sheepish grin. “Pretty sure I still have an extensive reserve of random knowledge about ancient civilizations.”

“Well, have you read _The Lost City of Z_?” Veronica asks, perking up with interest. “You know Percy Fawcett inspired Indiana Jones?”

“I did not, actually.” Jughead leans forward in his chair, his knee brushing hers under the table.

“Well, you definitely need to check it out. I’ll get it for you. You’ll like it. Actually, David Grenn’s writing reminds me a little bit about your stuff. Same intense energy. And you’ve only gotten better since you started at the Daily News.”

“You know, I’m trying to get a spot in this class, Great Hoaxes and Fantasies in Archaeology. It sounds super cool, if you wanna join me for next semester.”

Veronica grins. “I’d love to, actually.” She glances at her watch and gets up. “I’m gonna be late for a study group, but e-mail me your draft of the paper tonight? I can polish it up and send it back by tomorrow.”

Jughead grins. “You’re a queen, Veronica Lodge!”

“And don’t you forget it, Torombolo,” she calls back over her shoulder.

* * *

“Why are you always dragging me to these Durfee parties, Lyd?” Veronica stands in front of the mirror applying the final touches of her makeup. “Ashleigh and Rebecca already agreed on go with you.”

Lydia pops up next to her, fully dressed up as Daphne from Scooby-Doo. “Because Sexy Sophie from Game Theory lives there, and you’re still my number one wing-woman.”

Veronica rolls her eyes. “Okay, now that you’re dating her, I think we can just call her Sophie, yeah,” she says, tucking the little tube of lipstick into her cleavage in case she needs to reapply during the evening.

“Fair enough,” Lydia concedes with the same smile she always has at the mention of her girlfriend. “I don’t know why you’re acting put out about it though. The party’s on Jughead’s floor. And I know you like him.”

Veronica shrugs a shoulder. “He’s just a good study partner.”

“ _Sure, Jan,_ ” Lydia replies with a pointed look as she pushes her out the door.

She may not have known Veronica for long but this much she knows: when two people snark at each other as much as Jughead and Veronica do, it means they like each other.

She wonders how long it’ll take them to figure it out.

* * *

The party’s spread out along the entire dorm floor, though Jughead’s room seems to be the one with most of the booze, which would explain why it’s getting so much foot traffic. The decorations are pretty half assed, but everyone’s in costume and on theme, and that’s good enough.

Jughead is wearing a tight white t-shirt half tucked into cuffed blue jeans. His black high tops are well-worn in and his long dark hair is slicked back. Veronica does a double take because _damn it,_ the boy is really pulling off that James Dean look.

“Hey, uptown girl,” Jughead greets, a smile tugging at his lips when he spots her.

Veronica is wearing a much-too-short red poodle skirt with a stripped top. She’s meant to be a 50’s girl, he guesses, and it doesn’t escape the notice of either of them that they match.

Veronica quirks her eyebrows at the nickname. “Billy Joel.” She’s always been good at keeping up. “Does that mean you’re the downtown boy?”

“Well, I certainly can’t afford to buy you pearls,” Jughead says, taking a sip from his solo cup.

“ _No pearls in college_.” Veronica’s grinning when she reaches over to steal the cup from his hand and takes a sip.

Jughead clears his throat and Veronica watches his Adam’s apple bob up and down.

“That sounds vaguely familiar,” he mutters. He remembers the seriousness with which she’d proclaimed, “ _no beanies in college_ ,” when their truce officially started.

“I like your costume.” Veronica flashes him a dazzling smile.

“Yeah, well, minimal effort.” Jughead shifts his weight from one leg to another, tucking his now free hands into his jeans’ pockets. “Your costume’s very...too,” he says with an awkward grin.

What is even happening right now? Why can’t he stop staring at her red lips or the way that skirt shows off her legs?

“J.J. my man! Keg is running low, your turn to get the other one from the closet.” A blonde boy appears, throwing an arm around Jughead’s shoulders and he’s clearly already drunk.

Jughead shakes his head and gives the guy’s chest a friendly pat. “Excellent timing as always, Wilke,” he says. “Veronica, this is my roommate, Wilke. Wilke, this is Veronica Lodge.”

Veronica shakes the hand that Wilke is extending and he drops a kiss on the back of her palm. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance, beautiful,” he says with a languid grin.

“Charmed.” Veronica pulls her hand back quickly.

“Seriously, Jones. _Keeeeeg_!” Wilke sounds desperate as he goes back to what appears to be an elaborate game of beer pong.

“Interesting roommate,” Veronica notes. “First time I’ve ever been so formally introduced to someone who’s not wearing pants.”

Jughead laughs at that. “He’s also into minimal effort. And _Risky Business_. The stars really aligned for this one.”

“Come on, Torombolo. I’ll help you with the keg. Can’t keep the masses waiting for a refill.”

* * *

It’s hard to say just how they ended up like this, locked in the tiny storage closet with no lights and an untapped keg. Their cries for help are completely drowned out by the music blasting outside.

Jughead shifts his weight, his leg bumping against Veronica’s in the cramped space. “Sorry,” he says, reaching out to steady her.

“It’s fine.” Veronica blinks into the darkness and hates that she can’t see his face clearly. She wants to see his expression. “Where are you?”

Jughead’s hands find her waist. “I’m right here.” He can feel his heart beating faster now and wonders if she can’t hear it somehow. “You with me?”

God, he is too drunk for this. And maybe she is, too. It’s hard to tell at the moment. _How_ does she smell so good? He can’t focus like this.

“Yeah.” Veronica reaches up to place her hands on his shoulders. It feels better now, like she’s grounded. Like they’re holding each other steady somehow. “I’m with you.”

It’s hard to say how long they spend like that, just holding on to each other, before Veronica mutters, “ _Screw it,_ ” and presses her lips against Jughead’s.

It’s fast but firm, the touch of her mouth against his. Just as she’s about to pull back, ready to write the whole thing off as a side effect of claustrophobia, Jughead’s hand is on the back of her head. He’s kissing her back, lips parting slightly. She takes this as an invitation, her tongue exploring his mouth slowly. Her hands are tangled up in his dark hair and it’s soft and thick. Just like she first imagined it would be when she slid the beanie off his head so many months ago.

This isn’t the first time they’ve kissed. He’s felt her lips against his before, and it had been a good kiss as far as kisses go. But it had been different back then. They’d had an audience and they’d been trying to make a point and it just...it hadn’t been like this.

When the closet door finally opens, Veronica has her legs wrapped around Jughead’s waist, her thumbs tugging on his belt loops. His hands are roaming under her skirt and his mouth pressed against her neck.

“So _that’s_ the delay with the keg.” To his credit, Wilke just reaches for the keg and heads off as if he saw nothing.

They squint at each other, eyes adjusting to the light, as Jughead sets Veronica down.

“Your face...” they both say in unison.

Clearly that red lipstick Veronica had borrowed from her roommate was not smear proof because it’s now smeared over half of Jughead’s face. They both burst out laughing.

“God, if that’s what’s on your face, I must look like the Joker right now.” She cradles his face in her hands, her thumbs brushing softly over his lips, trying to wipe it off but really only making it worse.

Jughead reaches over to tuck her hair behind her ear. “Prettiest Joker I’ve ever seen,” he says with a soft smile. They both laugh at this, still standing close together.

Veronica rubs her thumb over his lower lip slowly. Jughead wants to lean in and kiss her again, feel her body against his, finish what they’d started in that closet. The way Veronica keeps staring at his mouth seems to indicate that she wants the same thing.

“Ronnie, you have to come quick. Lyd’s not feeling well, I think she needs to go.”

They jump apart at the interruption and before either can react, Veronica’s being pulled away because her roommate needs her help.

* * *

The next day, after making sure Lydia has both fluids and enough ibuprofen to survive the hangover close at hand for when she finally wakes up, Veronica gets dressed and heads out like a woman on a mission.

Durfee is pretty quiet when Veronica arrives and knocks on Jughead’s door.

It takes a few minutes, but finally she can hear him grumbling something or other as he makes his way to the door. “I’ve told you guys, buy a freaking lanyard for the dorm-“ Jughead cuts himself off when he sees it’s neither of his roommates banging on the door. “Dorm keys,” he finishes.

_Of course_ Jughead opens the door soaking wet and half naked!

He’s clearly fresh out of the shower, wet hair falling over his face, his right hand holding the door open while his left hand holds a towel wrapped around his waist.

He flashes her a grin, brow quirked in surprise. “You’re not Scott or Wilke,” he says, deadpan.

Veronica stands at his door looking more like her old self than she has in months - tights, a short skirt and a very expensive sweater paired with even more expensive heels. She’s holding a box and she smiles tentatively. “Can I come in anyway?” Jughead steps aside, holding the door open for her.

They settle across from each other on the counter of the makeshift (and highly against dorm rules) kitchen.

Veronica opens the box, flashing a delicious looking selection of cupcakes. “From Magnolia Bakery. They’re my favorites.”

Of course Jughead can’t help himself, so he immediately reaches for one. “So...to what do I owe the cupcakes?”

“They’re _we-made-out-and-things-shouldn’t-get-awkward_ cupcakes,” Veronica replies with an almost businesslike tone.

Jughead chews the last bit slowly, staring at her with a glint in his eyes. “Does that kick in now or when I finish the box?”

“Are you mocking me?”

The corners of his lips quirk up slightly. “Maybe a little.” He shrugs, turning the box over and offering her one. “Should be we break cupcake together, make the anti-awkwardness seal official?”

“ _Pendejo_ ,” Veronica mutters under her breath, but she grabs a cupcake anyways - the mocha buttercream is still her favorite and she can never resist.

“It was a party, you kissed me,” Jughead says with a lazy shrug, “things happen. Doesn’t have to be awkward.”

Veronica scoffs at the way he says it, as if he was just a casual bystander of the whole thing. “You kissed me back.”

“That’s neither here nor there.”

“I non-concur,” Veronica presses on, moving around the counter to get in his face. “You kissed me back. You wanted it, too.”

Jughead flashes her a shiteating grin at that. “Is the mighty Veronica Lodge admitting she wanted me?”

“Yeah, as soon as the pretentious Jughead Jones III admits he wanted me too!”

And Jughead has no idea what comes over him then. But Veronica is standing so close and she’s getting so flustered and he can’t help himself. “So what if I did?” he asks, licking his lips. “What if I do?” He leans in then, pressing his lips against hers. It’s soft and then his tongue finds its way into her mouth as his hands come up to cradle her face, pulling her closer.

It’s hard to say which one of them is more surprised when Veronica follows him eagerly, her body pressed up entirely against his, her hands gripping his shoulder blades first then her fingernails raking through his hair when he moves down to kiss her neck. She doesn’t have to stand on her tiptoes to kiss him when she’s wearing heels, but she still grabs him hard and pulls him closer, drawing him down to her level. Jughead’s deft hands are at her waist now, fingers getting under her sweater and inching up. And he may be wearing only a towel, but Veronica’s naked before he is and then they’re on his bed and well...

* * *

It feels like a cheesy romcom moment, the way they lay side by side under the covers afterwards.

“So,” Jughead starts, deciding to break the silence, “will I be getting another box of cupcakes for this?” He links his fingers together behind his head, grinning like a little shit.

Veronica sits up, leaning on her elbows to look at him. “You’re such an asshole,” she says, but she’s grinning, too. “You know we need to have a conversation about this, right? We just had _sex_! We need to-”

“What? Discuss terms and conditions?”

Veronica rolls her eyes. “Stop making light of it! There are things we need to talk about. Like, how the hell did this happen and are we doing this again and-”

Jughead sits up to peck her lips. “I wholeheartedly vote _yes_ on the doing it again scenario,” he says, falling back into bed. “Look, we already talked this out at the beginning of the year - we’re allies, what happens in Yale stays at Yale, and it doesn’t have to be anything more than that if you don’t want it to be. Right?”

“Right,” Veronica answers, laying back, too. “I’m just saying. I think we definitely need some ground rules here.”

“Sure,” Jughead agrees, amused.

“First, we both come.”

“Uh, does that really need to be a rule? I’m pretty sure I already delivered on that front.” Jughead smirks before pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “Or didn’t I?”

Veronica rolls her eyes. “You _did_.” And they both know he already knows that - 3 very impressive times. “But it’s important to be explicit in the rules of this new arrangement. So-”

“So first things first: we both come,” Jughead finishes for her, nodding in agreement. “That seems fair.”

“I thought as much,” Veronica replies. “Second, this is not a relationship. We are not dating. This is...”

“Stress relief?” Jughead supplies, for lack of a better term.

“Good. Yes. Stress relief.” Veronica nods to herself. “That’s perfect. And finally, rule number three: what happens in Yale, _stays_ at Yale.”

“I can most definitely agree to those terms, Lodge,” Jughead says. Then he moves on top of her and kisses her. “Wanna seal the deal?”

Veronica bites her lip and trips his knee, rolling herself on top. “Yes I do,” she says, leaning down to kiss him and then moving to whisper in his ear, “but you should know... _I like it on top_.”

* * *

Between the midterms and then the finals and the papers they both have to turn in, the last few weeks before the semester is over pass by in a blur of studying, caffeine and sex.

They mostly meet up in his dorm, since he has a single bedroom. Meanwhile Veronica has to juggle the schedules of 3 different roommates to sneak Jughead into her dorm. Then there are the library quickies that they always swear will never happen again, but have indeed been repeated in upwards of the double digits by now.

They sit for their last final together on December 20th for their 8:20 a.m. class. Jughead, of course, is the first in class to finish and he waits for Veronica outside.

“Hey, Lodge,” he calls out when he spots her. “Think fast!” He tosses her an apple and grins.

Veronica catches it and takes a bite. “God, I needed this. Thank you, Jughead.”

“Just a little token to celebrate officially surviving our first semester at Yale.” Jughead shrugs and then reaches for her hand. “And I think Wilke and Scott are gone now, if you want to come over.”

Veronica groans, burying her face in his shoulder. “It’s not that I don’t want to,” she starts, and god knows a couple of orgasms would be a great way to finish the semester, “but I am dead tired right now. I need a nap.”

“Me too,” Jughead agrees, “which is why I offered. Figured my room would be quieter than yours right now. Don’t Lyd, Becks and Ashleigh still have tests they’re studying for?”

They do. In fact, all three her roommates still have 2 more finals they’re frantically preparing for. That said, napping together just isn’t what they do. There’s no explicit rule against it, but it had certainly always been implied.

Then again... “Oh god, _yes_ , let’s go,” she agrees.

* * *

Veronica wakes up 3 hours later bundled under plaid sheets, wearing one of Jughead’s t-shirts. She looks around the room and notices his mostly packed duffel. They hadn’t discussed plans and she’s not sure if he’s going back to Riverdale.

Last week they’d each gotten an e-mail – Jughead’s from Archie and Veronica’s from Betty – where they were casually informed that Betty and Archie were officially in a relationship. She took the news in stride. If she’s honest with herself, a part of her was always waiting for this to happen. Jughead too appeared unbothered by the situation, but she hadn’t wanted to press the subject.

Just then, Jughead walks back in. He’s in his boxers and he’s holding two large mugs. “Figured you were due to wake up soon,” he says, sitting down across from her in bed. “I was in a hot chocolate mood.” He offers her a cup, already taking a sip from his.

“Did you put in extra marshmallows?” Veronica wraps her hands around the mug to warm them up.

Jughead nods. “And a dash of nutmeg, too. I know what you like.”

It’s not meant to be a dirty pun, but it brings color to her cheeks anyways. Although, to be fair, after a near month of clandestinely hooking up, Jughead has learned most of the things she likes. Hell, he’s even introduced her to few things she hadn’t know she would enjoy so much.

They sip their cocoa in comfortable silence. Jughead is distracted, looking something up on his phone. Veronica just watches him, zooms in on the tattoo on his shoulder. He’d covered up the Serpents’ patch with new ink sometime in the summer after graduation. Now he had a cherry blossom tree that made its way up his shoulder and spread into his chest and back. She should be used to it by now - she’s touched it and clawed at it and bitten down on it and tasted it countless times now. Still, every time she sees the shades of red move across his chest, she finds herself staring.

“Why’d you cover up your old tattoo?” Veronica blurts, breaking the silence.

Jughead drops his phone and steals a glance at his shoulder automatically. “I had to. When you’re out of the Serpents, you gotta shed your skin. You know, even when you leave the club on good terms, once you’re out, you forfeit the right to wear their ink.” He shrugs, running a hand over his arm. “I could’ve blacked it out, but I didn’t want to just cover it with nothing. I’ve always liked cherry blossoms so when the time came to officially take the Serpents off my skin I figured...why not? Better something pretty than a blacked out spot I have to stare at forever.”

“Decidedly better than a blacked out spot. It suits you,” she says. “You know, I’ve read that cherry blossoms represent the fragility and the beauty of life; a reminder that life is often almost overwhelmingly beautiful but also tragically short.”

Jughead smiles. “I like that.”

He looks into her eyes and it kind of makes her skin feel hot. That always happens when he does that, when he doesn’t break eye contact or look away.

“So,” Veronica clears her throat, “what are your Christmas plans?”

Jughead shrugs. “Nothing, really. Wilke invited me to crash with him in KC, but I told him I’d pass.” He pauses to take another long pull from his mug. “Not exactly thrilled to be headed back to Riverdale, but I guess I have no other options.”

“You should come into the city with me,” Veronica suggests offhand. “My mom is out of the country for the holidays and daddy’s back in jail so I figured I’d treat myself to a New York Christmas.”

Jughead quirks his eyebrows. They’d never talked about it, but it had always been implied that their partnership was confined to the Yale campus, maybe New Haven if they were pushing it. Adding a road trip to it? That was uncharted territory.

“Uh...” Jughead stammers a bit, opening and closing his mouth a few times. “What would I do with my bike?”

Normally Veronica would roll her eyes that that’s his main concern, but she knows how long it took him to buy that Harley; she vividly remembers how he spent all of senior year fixing it up all by himself, saving up piece by piece until it was good as new. Instead, she offers a practical solution: “We can leave it in long term parking.”

Jughead has that look, like he’s seriously considering agreeing to this. “Come on, Torombolo! Don’t think, just act. Do it, run away with me,” she tempts. “ _Por favor.._.”

It’s the only way she’ll say please like that, soft and pleadingly; she only ever does it in Spanish.

Jughead smiles at that and nods. “ _Yes_.”


	2. starry eyes sparking up my darkest night

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Veronica is in every single one of his pictures: walking in Central Park, and at that stupid 2008-themed party, and asleep in his bed, and taking stupid selfies in the library when they’re supposed to be studying, and that insane video from the first (and last) time he tried to teach her how to drive his bike, and pulling his long hair to remind him it’s time for a haircut, and plopped down on his lap while they eat or read or study, and pushing his whole face away with the palm of her hand while they’re arguing. 
> 
> And in every single one of them, Jughead has the most ridiculous look on his face; always staring at her, smiling like an idiot.

**part 2:**   
**second semester**

They ride up to the city in a limo. They’re both on a high after having survived a grueling first semester and they celebrate accordingly, drinking all the little bottles of hooch in the mini fridge and emptying out most the snack bar.

“Hey,” Jughead starts, pulling out a bottle of whipped cream from the mini fridge, “how soundproof is that?” He shakes the can as he juts his chin out towards the partition separating them from the driver. 

Veronica flashes him a wicked grin. “Let’s find out.”

After they finish the can, she sincerely hopes that the partition was indeed soundproof because the noises Jughead got out of her bordered on obscene.

The boy can work wonders with that mouth of his.

* * *

Because Veronica Lodge doesn’t know how to do things by halves, they’re staying in a penthouse with Central Park view at the Plaza Hotel for their New York City Christmas.

She has a whole list of things to do and places to visit with him in the city. Her entire face lights up when she talks about their schedule for the next two weeks, and Jughead’s tempted to agree with whatever she wants to do just to keep that look on her face.

They spend an entire day at The Met. Jughead actually makes it through the entire In Pursuit of Fashion exhibit, listening to Veronica point out her favorites and discussing their significance. Veronica surprises him with a private tour of the Art of Native America exhibit. The rest of their time is spent exploring the Dutch masterpieces, admiring the Rembrandts and Lairesses, and then hotly debating the tensions between realism and idealism.

Veronica introduces Jughead to The Strand. Which turns out to be kind of like setting loose a five-year-old kid in an epic toy store. He loses himself in the stacks for literal hours, picking out a pretty sizable pile of used paperbacks he absolutely needs to get.

“Here,” she hands him a bag when they leave the store. “Something to remember this by.”

Jughead looks inside and finds a Strand t-shirt. He grins, leaning down to press a kiss to her cheek. “You’re amazing,” he says.

Next day, Jughead blindfolds her and takes her to Tiffany’s on Fifth Avenue. He has coffee and her favorite cherry danishes, and when he takes off the blindfold Veronica flashes him a quizzical look.

“Couldn’t come to New York City with you and _not_ do Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

Veronica laughs, jumping up into his arms and hugging him tight. He almost drops the coffees just to hug her back, but he manages to keep it together.

“This is so cheesy, but in the absolute best way possible!” She’s buried her face in the crook of his neck and she kisses him there.

“Well, you know...anything to see you smile,” he whispers, burying his face in her hair.

 _How does she_ always _smell so good_?

* * *

Christmas morning is kind of weird in a hotel with no tree, but they get room service and exchange gifts, just them. It’s kind of nice, too, actually.

Veronica, of course, opens hers first. She’s very pleasantly surprised by her present: a refurbished Polaroid camera from the 80’s, along with a couple of rolls of film.

“Jug, this is so cool!” she exclaims, already loading up the camera so she can start taking pictures.

“It’s silly, but I just...I don’t know, I thought you’d like it.”

Jughead gets a brand new leather messenger bag with his initials monogrammed on the corner in beautiful golden calligraphy. He thanks her, running his fingers over the **_J.J. III_**.

Veronica snaps her very first Polaroid of him then, attempting to capture that elusive smile of his. “I was going to get you a new MacBook, but then I figured you’d think that was too much.”

Jughead flashes her a grin. “This is perfect. Thank you.”

* * *

Because she is a Lodge, of course Veronica has about a dozen invitations to various black-tie parties to celebrate the New Year. Plus, they’re in New York so they could always join the hordes of tourists in Times Square counting down for the ball to drop.

Instead, they decide to stay in for the day. They watch movies, debating over every single selection - he is partial to Bogart, she prefers Hepburn; he wants to binge watch the original Indiana Jones movies, she wants to do a Cameron Crowe marathon. They compromise, taking turns picking out movies and ruthlessly mocking each other’s selections.

When it’s time for the countdown, they watch the ball drop on TV. At midnight, Jughead leans in to kiss her, as tradition dictates, and Veronica reaches for her new camera.

The first picture she takes in the new year is of her and Jughead kissing on the couch.

 _Not a bad way to start the year,_ Veronica thinks.

* * *

Their second semester is different.

They no longer feel like clueless freshmen, even though they basically still are. They end up in two classes together this year, this time on purpose. They both also load up their schedules with five classes yet again, which means they’ll be hating themselves come finals.

The old campus looks completely different when it’s blanketed with snow; the buildings look a little magical and the Hogwarts jokes abound.

It’s also cold as fuck.

Veronica agrees to go with Jughead to an off campus bookstore that sells used discount books. Their new classes have reading lists a mile long and he refuses to spend $300 on new books when he can get them cheaper elsewhere.

They’re walking down the street when Veronica suddenly hands over a tube of Glossier.

Jughead just stares at it for a beat then hands it back. “No, thanks.”

Veronica rolls her eyes. “You are _such_ a boy,” she accuses, putting on a thick coat of the chapstick on her own lips.

“And you are _such_ a girl,” Jughead volleys back with an eye roll.

But then Veronica grabs him by the back of the head and plants her lips against his, kissing him softly. “You’re an idiot,” she says decisively.

Jughead rubs his lips together, spreading the excess chapstick gloss more evenly. “It tastes like coconut,” he announces with a grin.

“And it’ll keep your lips from drying out, too,” Veronica says with a wink.

Jughead reaches for her back pocket and twirls her around, pulling her up against his chest. “No wonder you always taste so good.”

“Smooth moves, Swayze.” Veronica slaps his chest playfully. “What?” she presses when she sees that look in his eyes.

“Nothing.” Jughead darts his eyes away from her. “It’s stupid and you’ll think I’m weird.”

Veronica scrunches up her nose. “Yeah, that ship sailed when we were in high school,” she informs him. “Spill it, Torombolo.”

Jughead grins down at her. “I just think you look really hot wearing a beanie.”

That answer startles a laugh out of her. She presses a quick kiss to his mouth. “Like I said, you’re an idiot.”

For a second, Jughead almost replies, “ _I’m_ your _idiot_ ,” but he doesn’t. This thing they’re doing, it isn’t that.

The terms and conditions are very clear.

* * *

Veronica settles into a routine for the new semester easily enough.

No more 8:20 a.m. classes because she’s never making that mistake again, thank you very much. However, she does get suckered into taking a calculus class with Lydia. (Why on earth anyone would want to be a math major is beyond her, but she’d wanted to be a supportive roommate. She already regrets it and they’re barely a month into the class.)

The arrangement with Jughead is still going strong. Honestly, she’s kind of surprised by how easy it’s gotten between them. They still argue over everything. In fact, signing up for another lit class together had only increased their constant bickering. But she actually enjoys their verbal sparring. If anything, it’s another form of foreplay between them.

Jughead opens the door and is very surprised to find Veronica there with a pizza box in hand.

“I come bearing pizza and wine,” she announces, letting herself in. “I remembered Wilke and Scott are at lacrosse practice today. Figured we could take advantage.”

“I love the way your brain works,” he says, grinning like an idiot.

Veronica actually giggles at that. “What do you want first, food or sex?”

“ _Ouch_! Talk about a Sophie’s Choice for me,” Jughead says, clutching his chest as if he’s seriously pained by the thought of that decision.

Then Veronica opens her coat to reveal a barely there black lace teddy and his jaw drops. “Uh, yeah, sex first. Definitely, that, yeah...”

She drops the coat and jumps him, wrapping her legs around his waist. “Not gonna lie,” she pauses to kiss him, “for a second I wasn’t sure which way you were gonna go.” He throws his head back, laughing like a little kid and god, she really loves making him laugh like that.

“Yeah, well, Veronica Lodge is better for me than pizza. Who knew?”

They spend the rest of the afternoon in naked in bed, eating pizza and drinking wine and watching old movies on his laptop, and when she slides on one of his t-shirts and falls asleep spooning him it feels like the most natural thing in the world.

* * *

Spring Break arrives suddenly.

It feels like it was only yesterday that they were all bitching about how January was dragging on forever, and now suddenly it’s already March.

Jughead is lying on Veronica’s bed, absentmindedly reading Jane Austen and munching on an apple while Veronica flits around the room, pulling out clothes and meticulously packing.

“I don’t know why I agreed to this,” Veronica repeats for the fifth time.

Betty, Cheryl, Toni and Kevin (who had invited himself along, refusing to be left behind in Riverdale) had planned a girls’ trip down to Miami for the break. The plan is to meet in Riverdale, rent a comfy van and drive down.

“Because after yet another downpour in forty degree weather, the prospect of lounging out in the sun, on the beach sounds like a heaven,” Jughead supplies, turning another page on his book.

“You got me there,” Veronica concedes, tossing in one last bikini into her bag.

FP had been pretty clear that he expected Jughead to come home for Spring Break. He’d left early on Thanksgiving and he’d skipped Christmas altogether, now his father wanted him home for a few days and it was nonnegotiable.

On the bright side, Archie had gotten him a job at the garage he’d be working in during the break and Jellybean would be in town for a week. It’d be good to catch up with them, maybe hang out with Sweet Pea, Fangs and the rest of the guys, too.

“You’ll have fun,” Jughead says in monotone, still never taking his eyes away from the novel.

Veronica walks over to the bed and straddles him. “I feel _ignored_.”

“ _You_ ’re the one making me give Austen another shot here, Lodge.” He keeps reading just to annoy her, avoiding eye contact becuase he knows if he looks at her he’s gonna forget all about the book.

“We made a deal,” she says, “you make it through one Jane Austen novel and I will attempt to suffer through Bukowski _yet again._ ” She starts to slowly undo the buttons on her blouse. “We can compare notes later.”

Jughead tosses the book aside, his eyes glued to her breasts. “This is _so_ not playing fair,” he says, licking his lips.

Veronica’s already tossing her blouse away and she’s in that red bra that she knows he likes. “Do you want me to stop?” she asks, her hands already reaching for the zipper of his jeans.

“Please, never stop,” he near begs, before crashing his lips against hers.

_Fuck_ , he’s gonna miss her.

* * *

It may be true that you can never go home again, but at least you can always come back to Pop’s.

Jughead is starting on his second burger, waiting on Archie. He’s not sure if he’s actually going to admit this to Veronica yet, but he’s actually getting into Pride and Prejudice.

He underlines another quote that caught his eye, “ _I cannot fix on the hour, or the spot, or the look or the words, which laid the foundation. It is too long ago. I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun._ ”

He’s well aware that he probably shouldn’t vandalize Veronica’s book, but by now he’s filled the margins with notes and underlined most of his favorite passages. So basically he’s already made his peace with buying her a new one.

“Sorry I’m late,” Archie says, suddenly appearing and sitting across from him. “We had a customer show up right at closing time.”

“You know I’m always good at Pop’s,” Jughead mumbles around a mouthful of burger, folding down the corner of the page he left off on.

Archie grins, calling up the waiter to put in his order. This is really the only time they’ve had to catch up all week. Work has kept them both busy so far. They talk about school and classes, mostly redundant small talk. Archie is oblique about things with Betty, almost as if he’s feeling out Jughead on the subject.

“Hey,” Jughead cuts him off with a smile. “You know I’m fine with you and Betty, right? You’re my best friend, Archie, and you’re the best guy I know. I’m glad you guys are happy together.”

Archie grins, letting out a breath he hadn’t even realized he’d been holding. Conversation flows more naturally after that.

“How about you?” Archie asks. “You seeing anyone now?”

Jughead’s eyes immediately dart away. “Eh...kinda. I don’t know. It’s complicated. There’s this girl and we’re kind of doing this friends with benefits things, except without the friends part - although we _are_ friends now. I think. We feel like friends. It wasn’t supposed to be anything, you know, but then we started having sex. And it’s great. It’s fine. I mean, she does...smell nice.”

Archie raises his eyebrows. “ _Jug_. You’re _rambling_. About a girl. I’ve never seen you rambling before.” He laughs, though not meanly. “ _You have a crush_!”

Jughead frowns as if it’s the most preposterous thing he’s ever heard. “ _Do not_ ,” he mutters with a pout.

“Oh, you _so_ do,” Archie chuckles. “You are in _serious_ crush mode right now!”

Jughead rolls his eyes. “Even if I was, it doesn’t matter. That’s not what this is.”

“Maybe it’s not what it is now,” Archie volleys, “but you shouldn’t discount what it could be in the future.”

Jughead “hmms” at that, thinks that dating Betty has made Archie a bit wiser.

* * *

A week in and Veronica is ready to go home. Sure, the sun and the beach are a nice change of pace, but Florida is too humid and between Kevin’s hook ups and Cheryl and Toni’s very active sex life, she’s tired of being sex-iled out of their motel room at odd hours.

She’s sitting on a beach chair next to Betty, trying to make it through reading Bukowski. Kevin has entered the sand castle building competition and Toni has dragged Cheryl onto a banana boat ride.

“I’ve missed you, Vee.” Betty says as she sips a piña colada.

Veronica sets down the book and flashes her a smile. “Me, too, Betts,” she admits.

They catch up on everything, talking about their new roommates and their classes and comparing life at Brown versus life at Yale. Finally they circle over to the topic of relationships and Veronica clams up.

“Come on, spill!” Betty prompts. “We’ve been here a week and you haven’t hooked up with any guys. Are you seeing someone?”

Veronica takes a sip of her drink and chews on the straw as she considers how to answer the question.

Technically speaking, she _isn’t_ seeing anyone. The terms of her arrangement with Jughead were very clear: they were allies who occasionally slept together for stress relief. In fact, they had explicitly stated that they were _not_ in a relationship. Certainly their arrangement never specified anything about them being exclusive. But...

But they _felt_ exclusive.

Veronica wasn’t sleeping with anyone else, didn’t _want_ to be with anyone else. As far as she knew, Jughead wasn’t hooking up with anyone on the side, either. Not that she’d asked. But just, logistically speaking, when would he even have the time? He was always in class or at the paper. His only spare time was spent eating or with her.

Yes, she was quite certain that there wasn’t anyone else.

“It’s complicated,” is what she finally replies to Betty. “There’s a guy I’ve been hooking up with for a while, but it’s not... We don’t even like each other.” Even as she says it, she knows that that’s no longer the truth. In fact, it hasn’t been the truth for quite some time now.

Betty smiles knowingly. “Yeah. The best ones always start that way.”

Just then Kevin arrives back with a blue ribbon, announcing he’s won free drinks at a club. Cheryl and Toni arrive laughing and soaking wet from the opposite direction. They all crash on the remaining beach chairs and laugh, discussing tonight’s plans.

Veronica searches her bag for her polaroid camera and turns on the timer. She sets it on top of the cooler and frames the shot. “Alright, let’s capture this moment for posterity,” she says. “Everyone get together!”

The picture comes out great and as they pass it around to check it out, she’s struck by the thought, “ _I wish Jughead was here_ ,” and she doesn’t quite know what to do with it.

* * *

When they finally drive back, they return the van at the airport closest to Riverdale. Kevin is flying back to USC and Betty is flying back to Brown. They’d already dropped Cheryl and Toni off at Duke on the drive up.

After prolonged goodbyes, Veronica is standing outside at the departures entrance and debating whether she’ll rent another car to drive home or call her mother to ask for a town car to pick her up.

“Hey, uptown girl,” a familiar voice calls from across the street.

Veronica does a double take because she can’t quite believe her eyes: Jughead is there, leaning against his bike, flashing her that smile she feels he saves just for her.

“I figured you needed a ride back to school,” he adds, noticing the surprise on her face.

Veronica rushes across the street, dropping her bag to jump into Jughead’s arms. He picks her up and she wraps her legs around his waist, kissing him deeply. “I can’t believe you’re here!”

He shrugs a shoulder. “I missed you. Like, a little bit.”

She laughs at that. “A little bit?”

“Yeah,” he replies. “Don’t get cocky about it, princess.”

“I would _never_!” she exclaims with mock-sincerity. She pecks his lips. “ _Hey_ ,” she says, locking eyes with him, “I missed you, too.”

Jughead smiles. He sets her down and hands her the spare helmet. “Let’s go home.”

* * *

Midterms seem to sucker punch everyone as soon as Spring Break ends.

Veronica is buried under a mountain books, either polishing up final drafts of her papers or studying for tests. Jughead is in pretty much the same boat, not to mention his work hours and the deadlines for the Daily News. They’d seen each other sporadically, mostly to work on their joint paper for their archaeology class or to exchange notes from their lit class.

Which is why Jughead is caught completely off guard to find Veronica in his common room. Sitting on his couch. Laughing it up with his roommate, Scott.

“Hey, Jug,” Scott greets with a jut of his chin. He turns back to Veronica and hands her a notebook. “Now I’m officially late, see you tomorrow, Vee.” He grabs his gym bag and lacrosse stick, and he rushes out the door.

Jughead furrows his brow. “What was _that_?”

“We’re taking the same Spanish class,” Veronica replies, gathering up her own study materials and putting them away in her bag. “I’m helping him prep for the oral midterm.”

And _maybe_ she also remembered Jughead had a free period right around this time and she may or may not have been missing him a little (or a lot), but that’s neither here nor there, really.

Jughead is still frowning. Something about seeing her and his lacrosse playing, golden boy roommate cozied up together annoys him. _Fucking hell_. Is this... _jealousy_? Had Archie been right? Is he actually _crushing_ on Veronica Lodge?

Suddenly Veronica is standing in front of him. “Hey,” she says, pulling him out of his own head. “You busy right now? I have a few hours free...”

Whatever feeling was knotting up in his stomach loosens when she reaches for his belt loops and starts pulling him towards his bedroom.

Later, Veronica stands in front of the mirror as she gets dressed, making sure to check everything looks okay. “I can’t believe you gave me a hickey,” she says, tilting her head back to inspect the bruise already darkening on her neck.

Jughead is still under the covers and he sits up to get a good look at her. “I imagine you have ways of covering it up,” he says, “but _these_ , however, I’m not sure what to do with...” he lets his voice trail off as he gestures to long scratches down his chest.

Veronica smirks, completely unabashed. “You have them down your back, too,” she says, and Jughead could swear there’s a note of pride in her voice. “That was...more intense than usual.”

Jughead runs a hand through his messy hair. “If that’s a compliment, thank you.”

Veronica scrunches up her nose. “It wasn’t _not_ a compliment,” she admits.

“That’s a double negative,” Jughead smirks. “You’re slipping, Ms. Lodge.”

“Your fault,” she accuses. “You discombobulated me.”

* * *

Jughead wakes up snuggled under a lavander comforter. He blinks, his eyes adjusting to the light and it takes him a second to realize where he is - in Veronica’s bedroom. There’s a note on the pillow next to him. _Had to go to class_ , it reads, signed with just a V.

This keeps happening lately. They’ll meet up to study or to hang out or she’ll show up at his door and their quickies start to turn into sleepovers. They don’t discuss it, but Jughead has a feeling Veronica is as intensely aware of the change in dynamic as he is. He wonders if she likes it as much as he does and hopes desperately that’s the case.

Jughead gets dressed and tiptoes out of the bedroom with his shoes in his hands, hoping to escape undetected by all of Veronica’s roommates.

Luck, it turns out, isn’t on his side that morning.

“There’s coffee,” Lydia offers from couch. “C’mon, Jones,” she presses on, “something to warm you up before you do that walk of shame.”

Jughead turns around to face her and waves. “I should...” he gestures vaguely towards the door.

“I got the good donuts, too,” Lydia tempts, knowing his one weakness is always food.

This gets Jughead to go over and sit across from her. “Thanks, Lyd,” he says, taking the cup she’s offering and biting down on a glazed donut.

Lydia sips from her own cup and eyes him skeptically. “I wasn’t going to say anything because I don’t want to be _that_ roommate who can’t mind her own business, but it’s already practically mid-April. After this, we only have reading period and finals and that’s that, freshman year is over. Time is running out. When are you gonna nut up and makes things official with my girl?”

Jughead opens and closes his mouth a few times, at a loss for words. He definitely wasn’t expecting this right now. “I don’t - we don’t - I mean, it’s not...” He sighs. “Official is not what Veronica and I do. We’re just stress relief, something to survive the semester a little easier.”

Lydia rolls her eyes. “You are _the_ stupidest smart guy I know.” She stands up and hands him a lid for his cup. “We’re done here,” she says decisively. “And that is my favorite to-go coffee cup. Be sure to bring it back.”

That’s a dismissal if he’s ever heard one. Jughead just lifts the cup in small cheers gestures. “Will do,” he assures her, making his way to the door.

* * *

Despite the awkward moment with Lydia, the next few weeks carry on as if everything’s normal, and Jughead supposes everything _is_.

Sure, he may have inexplicably caught feelings for Veronica and she may in fact have become his best friend and he may be refusing to change his sheets because he likes the way they smell like her ridiculously expensive perfume.

These may all be things that are currently happening.

But on the surface, everything is normal - they still see each other in class and they get together to study and they meet up at a few on campus parties and everything is business as usual.

If Veronica can notice the way his heart seems to skip a beat every time they meet, she certainly isn’t letting on that she knows.

* * *

Things settle a bit after midterms end. Spring is starting to go into full bloom, which basically means that it’s safe to hang outdoors again, without bundling up under five layers of clothes.

“God, I feel like I’m slowly thawing out, finally!” Rebecca stretches out, laying her head on her backpack. “It’s like I come back alive during spring.”

“Mmhmm,” Veronica mumbles, completely engrossed as she highlights a passage in her econ textbook.

“Ohmygod, _how_ are you still studying?” Rebecca sits up and snatches the book away. “We’ve _just_ survived midterms! Finals aren’t for a few weeks, Ronnie. Relax and lay down with me, enjoy the sun.” She scooches over, making room for Veronica to lay next to her on the blanket.

Veronica considers arguing, but figures what the hell. It is beautiful outside and the weather is finally enjoyable so she might as well take advantage while she can. Besides, she’s got a few hours until her study session so she may as well squeeze in a nap now.

“Hey,” Rebecca prompts, nudging her with a foot. “You got summer plans lined up already?”

Veronica slides a pair of Ray Bans from her hair to cover her eyes. “Nothing, really. Going back home, maybe getting a summer job.” She tosses a balled up piece of paper at her head and adds, “Enjoy life _without_ roommates for a few months.”

Rebecca sticks her tongue out at her, tossing the paper ball back. “ _So_. Any plans to see Jughead during the summer?”

Veronica hadn’t really gone into the details of her alliance with Jughead with anyone, least of all her roommates. Truthfully she hadn’t even thought about what would happen during the summer. _What happens at Yale stays at Yale_ , they had agreed at the beginning of the term.

“Who knows, Becks,” she replies vaguely. “Summer’s long and Riverdale is...a small town.”

* * *

Jughead is greeted by Veronica’s overly enthusiastic roommate dragging him into the common room. “Come on in, Juggie!”

“Hey, Ash,” he greets with a weary sigh. It’s been almost a year and he still doesn’t understand how this girl is so perky all the time.

Ashleigh pulls him onto the couch and hands him a marker. “Hey, you totally have to sign my board!”

It’s a large collage filled with pictures. Jughead’s surprised to recognize most of the people in it. There’s a funny shot of him and Rebecca at the Daily News with their silly newspaper hats. There’s even a picture of him with Scott and Wilke in their Huey, Dewey, and Louie costumes at Pierson Inferno. But what surprises him is the amount of shots of him with Veronica, including a particularly cheesy one of them dancing at Crushes and Chaperones; he remembers when that silly Britney Spears song came on Veronica literally dragged him to the dance floor.

“Wow, this is pretty neat, Ash,” he says, finally deciding to sign by a picture of him and Veronica at the Harvard-Yale game, all decked out in Bulldogs gear. The game hadn’t been that exciting, but they’d tailgated and the food had been amazing.

“I wanted something to remember my first year with my best girls,” Ashleigh says.

Jughead hands her back the board. “Well, I’m honored to be included.”

“How could you not be? You and Ronnie are basically a two for one deal.”

Jughead rubs the back of his neck. “Um, speaking of, where is she?”

“She had a study thing, I think, but I’m not sure. Want me to tell her you stopped by?”

“No, um, that’s fine,” Jughead replies.

* * *

Commons is surprisingly empty that morning, which suits Veronica just fine since they’re reciting Spanish poetry and she doesn’t really feel like having an audience.

Scott manages get through the whole thing without making any mistakes and Veronica claps. “A+ for delivery,” she says, folding her hands in her lap. “I’d say we’re officially ready to ace our final presentation.”

“YES!” Scott pumps a fist in the air. They’d made a pretty decent team this semester.

They pack up their books and papers in silence until Scott clears his throat loudly. “Alright, Lydia will kill me if I don’t say anything - what’s the deal with you and Jug?”

Veronica rolls her eyes. “There is no _‘me and Jug_ ,’ Scott,” she immediately denies.

“We’ve all seen it. Wilke actually has a pool going about when you two are gonna actually admit how much you’re into each other. You already cost me $40, by the way. I’d put you down for getting together at Spring Fling.”

Veronica covers her surprise with a smirk. “Want me to reimburse you?”

“I’ll settle for you two getting your shit together,” Scott says before shouldering his backpack and heading out.

Veronica sits back and tries to let that all sink in. It’s not like she hasn’t been thinking about things. The year is almost over and her deal with Jughead always came with an expiration date.

Summer is fast approaching and Riverdale beckons. She should be happy to get to go home and relax, but every time the idea of spending three months without Jughead crosses her mind she gets an uncomfortable feeling in her chest. She’s not sure how to go from seeing each other practically every day to pretending the other doesn’t exist.

God, it wasn’t even about the sex, although she’d definitely miss that, too. No, it was just...

They always had such a good time together, hiding out in his dorm, going out for late night drives on his bike, eating takeout and watching TV and talking, or reading, or just being silent. It all felt comfortable with Jughead. But that didn’t mean anything. That was just what happened when you got used to hanging out with someone. Surely it would pass. But did she actually _want_ it to pass?

Being happy when she thought about him; wanting to talk to him and hear about his day; wanting to be with him, all the time, even when they were fighting - did she _truly_ want that feeling to end?

 _Fuck me_. “I’m in love with him.”

Hearing the words out loud makes her dizzy, but there it is. She reaches for her coffee cup and downs half of it like a shot. Then she opens up the group chat and sends a text.

 **Veronica:** I realized that I’m in love with Jughead and I don’t know what to do.

 **Ashleigh:** OMG! This is so exciting! I knew it! You’ve got to tell him!

 **Lydia:** Finally. But why are you telling us, tell HIM.

 **Veronica:** Why are you guys acting like this is old news? I just realized it right now and I’m freaking out!

 **Lydia:** Oh, honey, we’ve all known this for months...

 **Rebecca:** Ronnie, you and that boy have been in serious Couple Mode since last semester. Talk about coming late to the party.

 **Ashleigh:** Hey! It doesn’t matter that you’re late to the party. All that matters is that you got here after all! Right, Becks?

 **Rebecca:** Right. Go get him!

Veronica puts her phone away and sighs. _Go get him_. As if it’s that easy.

Would Jughead even want her?

* * *

When Jughead gets back to his room, he pulls out his laptop and checks his Dropbox. All his cell photos sync automatically and he scrolls through the ones from the past few months.

Veronica is basically in every single picture.

From the beginning of the year when they were in New York up until last week at Spring Fling, she’s everywhere: walking in Central Park, and at that stupid 2008-themed party, and asleep in his bed, and taking stupid selfies in the library when they’re supposed to be studying, and that insane video from the first ( _and last_ ) time he tried to teach her how to drive his bike, and pulling at his long hair to remind him it’s time for a haircut, and plopped down on his lap while they eat or read or study, and pushing his whole face away with the palm of her hand while they’re arguing.

And in every single one of them he has the most ridiculous look on his face; always staring at her, smiling like an idiot.

But that means nothing. He just likes being around her and spending time with her and listening to her talk about anything and everything and - holy shit, he’d fallen in love with her!

 _Motherfucker_.

He is in love with Veronica Lodge.

Now what?

* * *

_Now what_ turns out to be...nothing.

Because reading period is upon them and finals are right behind it, so they’re back to seeing each other sporadically at best. But other than that, it’s all more or less business as usual.

Except that Jughead can’t stop staring at her whenever they’re trying to study. He can tell something’s off about her but he’s not sure what.

The _what_ is that Veronica is suddenly acutely aware of all the little ways she’d gotten used to being intimate with Jughead in public. Because she’s basically spent the last couple of months treating him like a boyfriend - letting him eat off her plate and holding hands and sitting on his lap like that’s her designated chair and sleeping in his shirts and even sending him on a tampon run once or twice. But now that she’s also aware of her feelings for him, she finds herself holding back whenever they’re together 

It’s making things a bit tense.

* * *

This time around, Jughead sits for his last final a day before Veronica sits for hers.

Still, when Veronica finishes her insanely grueling calculus test, she finds him waiting outside the classroom.

“Think fast,” he says, tossing her an apple. “How was it?”

Veronica smiles at the sight. She was hoping he’d be there, but she wasn’t sure if he’d show up. “Mind numbing,” she replies, biting into the apple. “I’m never listening to Lydia ever again.”

Jughead looks down at his feet for a second. “Don’t know about that,” he says with a shrug, “she has her moments.” He jumps down from the railing he’s sitting on and walks over to her. “Um, do you wanna come hang out for a while? We can get some coffee - or another nap? I don’t know why they scheduled your final so early. Have you slept?”

Veronica scrunches up her nose. He’s rambling, but she doesn’t mention it. “Nap first, coffee after?” she suggests.

“Done,” Jughead agrees. “Here, let me get that.” He grabs her backpack and shoulders it, and when he reaches for her hand, she just links their fingers together and follows his lead.

Veronica feels a little bit of déjà vu, but she’s too exhausted to overanalyze anything right now. Instead, she slides on one of Jughead’s t-shirts and crawls into his bed. “You gonna join me?” she asks drowsily. “I need a nap buddy.”

Jughead smiles at that and lays down next to her. God, he’s gotten terrible at denying her anything.

Sleep comes easy, both because they’re drained and because their bodies are used to falling asleep together by now. He spreads an arm out and she curls up against his chest. “ _You smell good_ ,” she mumbles as she drifts off.

When she wakes up a few hours later, she’s alone in bed. She sits up and finds Jughead sitting at his desk, knee bouncing as he reads a book. She figures he couldn’t have been awake for long since he’s still in his boxers. His dorm room is mostly packed up and it looks a little bit sad like that, she thinks. Like it’s the end of something.

“Hey,” she calls out. “What time is it?”

“Hey.” Jughead smiles, setting aside the book. “It’s almost one. I didn’t wanna wake you.”

“Thanks. I really needed that.” She looks around the room again. “You all packed up?”

“Yeah, mostly. You know, this is it,” Jughead starts. “Freshman year is officially over. We made it.” He clears his throat, awkwardly shifting around a little. “Last year, when we started things, we said...”

“That we’d be allies for freshman year,” Veronica finishes for him. “And what happens at Yale stays at Yale. I remember all the terms and conditions. Looks like you’re finally gonna get rid of me, huh?” She tries hard to keep her voice steady and is beyond surprised that she manages it.

“I don’t...” Jughead walks over to sit across from her in bed. “ _Ronnie_ ,” he says, licking his lips nervously.

“You never call me that,” she near whispers.

“I don’t want to ever get rid of you.” He presses on, “I know it’s not what we agreed to. And I understand if you don’t feel the same way. But I love you, Veronica. I’m _in_ love with you. And I wanna be with you, no terms and conditions.”

The tears that had begun to pool in the corners of her eyes spill down her cheeks. “You love me?”

“I do. I don’t know when I started or how it happened, but I... I was in the middle before I knew that I had begun.”

Veronica giggles, “Is Jughead Jones actually quoting Jane Austen right now?”

“Only for you, Ms. Lodge,” he replies with a shy smile.

Veronica cradles his face in her hands, leaning her forehead against his. “ _Yo también te amo_ ,” she whispers.

“Um. I’m pretty sure I got that, but just to be clear, you’re saying...”

Veronica presses her lips to his for a quick kiss. “I’m saying I love you, too. And I don’t want any more rules or parameters, I just want _you_.”

Jughead pulls her into his lap and kisses her deep. “You know doing this means we’d be going home _together_. We’d have to tell people, including Archie...”

“And Betty, too.” Veronica doesn’t miss a beat reminding him.

Jughead smirks. “We could always send them a nice email,” he says.

Veronica laughs at the suggestion. “Look, I know we’ve never really discussed our significant exes, but...I’m all in if you are.”

“I am all in, princess.” Jughead nods decisively. “Which means that there’s just one thing left.”

“What’s that?”

“Veronica Lodge,” Jughead pauses to take a dramatic breath. “Do you want to be my girlfriend?”

Veronica flashes him a dazzling smile and links her wrists around his neck. “Ay, Torombolo,” she sighs happily before pressing a kiss to his lips. “I really, really do.”

“I love you so much.”

She beams at him.

“I know.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn’t sure how to end this, but I like how it turned out and I hope you guys enjoyed it, too!


End file.
